University Of Utah Researchers Think A Mushroom May Explain Legends Of Little People

Lilliputians from Gulliver's Travels, the Borrowers that featured tiny folks living in the walls, and even the Smurfs are examples of little people stories told throughout history. According to new research out of the University of Utah, there is a mushroom behind it.

The Surprising Scientific Connection Between Myths and Eating

Two researchers from the University, Colin Domnauer and Bryan Dentinger, took a closer look at the parts of the world where stories of little people were common. This included places in the Philippines, China, and Papua New Guinea.

What they found in common in these places was a mushroom. This specific mushroom, sometimes eaten while undercooked, seemed to cause the eater to see little people everywhere. Their work was published in a recent paper.

They describe some of the visions seen by people who ate the mushrooms. The little people are described in great detail and usually dressed in bright carnival clothing. They were anywhere from a few inches to a couple of feet tall.

Real Experiences: Hallucinations of Little People

He describes one account where the person said the little people were swimming around in the soup he was eating and one jumped off his spoon. He even remembered scooping the little people into his mouth.

They are breaking down the elements of the mushroom to try and understand why it causes people to have this specific hallucination. It will shed light on how the brain works and how the environment effects it.

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It is interesting that some of the wild stories from the past may have their root in the food being eaten and less about the myths being told. There are some amazing things being discovered at the University of Utah.